New Delhi: The Indian Air Force (IAF) has been looking at increasing its interoperability with friendly countries, participating in a host of international exercises over the past few years. Now, India will play host to first-ever mega multinational exercise this year.
The exercise, to be held in Jodhpur mid-year, will see participation from countries such as the US, Germany, Australia, France and Italy, among others.
Sources in the defence and security establishment said that the exercise is still in the planning phase and the complete list of participants will be finalised in the coming weeks.
In terms of equipment, the source said that India will participate with a wide range of its fighter jets, transport aircraft and helicopters. Fighter aircraft, including Su-30 MKI, Rafale, LCA Tejas, Mirage 2000 and MiG-29, will also be part of the exercise.
The IAF has, in the recent past, increased its participation in foreign multilateral exercises besides holding bilateral ones.
In 2022, the Air Force participated in Exercise Pitch Black-22 hosted by Royal Australian Air Force at its Darwin Air Base. It saw the participation of 17 air forces and over 2,500 military personnel. The IAF contingent included four Su-30 MKI & two C-17 aircraft.
Last year, the IAF participated in Exercise Orion at Mont-de-Marsan, an air force base of the French Air and Space Force (FASF). The IAF Contingent comprised four Rafale, two C-17, two ll-78 aircraft and 165 air warriors. Air forces from Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK, Spain and the US also participated in it.
Apart from these, India also participated in Exercise Blue Flag, which is a bi-annual multilateral exercise hosted by Israel. It was in 2017 that the IAF operated with the Israeli Air Force in a multilateral exercise setting.
Exercise Bright Star-23 held at Cairo airbase in Egypt was another multinational exercise that IAF was part of last year for the first time, which saw participation of contingents from the US, Saudi Arabia, Greece and Qatar.
The IAF contingent consisted of five MiG-29, two IL-78, two C-130 and two C-17 aircraft. Personnel from the IAF’s Garud Special Forces along with a contingent from the Indian Army participated in the exercise.
Apart from this, the IAF is also gearing up for two other mega exercises this year — Vayu Shakti-2024 and Gaganshakti-2024.
Also Read: Defence roadmap, space intel, nuclear energy — what India-France joint statement says
Vayu Shakti-2024
Vayu Shakti-2024 is a firepower demonstration that will be held on 17 February in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. The exercise is meant to demonstrate the synergy and coordination among the air force assets to hit enemy targets.
The IAF will showcase its ability to use missiles and bombs to hit designated targets with precision and accuracy. The exercise will feature all fighters such as Rafale, Su-30 MKI, LCA Tejas, Mirage 2000 and MiG-29.
The Army and Navy will also take part in the exercise with their helicopters, details of which are, however, not available.
Vayu Shakti-2024 is a triennial exercise that started in 1954 at Tilpat in Faridabad near Delhi, but was shifted to Pokhran in 1988. The last edition was held in 2019. The exercise was cancelled in 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Gaganshakti-2024
The third exercise to be held this year is Gaganshakti-2024, a pan-India exercise that is held once in five years The last edition was held in 2018. The exercise is designed to test the real-time coordination, deployment and employment of air power in a short and intense battle scenario.
The exercise will cover the entire spectrum of operations, from peacetime to wartime, across all the commands of the IAF.
In 2018, the exercise was conducted in two phases so that all commands get adequate opportunity to test the efficacy of their preparedness.
Phase I of the exercise involved the activation of Western, South Western and Southern Air Commands, along with the Army and Navy components. Phase II of the exercise involved the activation of Western, Central, Eastern and Southern Air Commands.
Phase II of the exercise also involved relocating the forces for them to be effective at new locations within 48 hours. It was carried out using round-the-clock operations of heavy-lift transport aircraft like C-17 and IL-76 as well as by many tactical airlift aircraft like C-130 and An-32 aircraft.
During the exercise, the Air Force used civil chartered flights and trains for the mobilisation of resources.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
Also Read: Tata & Airbus team up to manufacture helicopters in India with estimated rollout by 2026